The
sultan was kept in the custody of the Allies to ensure the cooperation
of an Ottoman administration, which had effective jurisdiction only
in Istanbul and part of northern Anatolia, while they disposed of
the rest of his empire. At the same time, a Turkish nationalist
movement was organized under Atatürk's leadership to resist
the dismemberment of Turkish-speaking areas. Atatürk had been
sent to eastern Anatolia as inspector general, ostensibly to supervise
the demobilization of Ottoman forces and the disposition of supplies,
but more particularly to remove him from the capital after he had
expressed opposition to the Allied occupation there. Upon his arrival
at Samsun in May 1919, Atatürk proceeded to rally support for
the nationalist cause and to recruit a nationalist army. Guerrilla
warfare against the government gradually grew to full-fledged campaigns
against the Greek army that threatened to involve the other Allied
occupation forces.

In July 1919, a nationalist congress met at
Erzurum with Atatürk presiding to endorse a protocol calling
for an independent Turkish state. In September the congress reconvened
at Sivas. Although the delegates voiced their loyalty to the sultan-caliph,
they also pledged to maintain the integrity of the Turkish nation.
The congress adopted the National Pact, which defined objectives
of the nationalist movement that were not open to compromise. Among
its provisions were the renunciation of claims to the Arab provinces,
the principle of the absolute integrity of all remaining Ottoman
territory inhabited by a Turkish Muslim majority, a guarantee of
minority rights, the retention of Istanbul and the straits, and
rejection of any restriction on the political, judicial, and financial
rights of the nation.

Negotiations
continued between the nationalist congress and the Ottoman government,
but to no avail. Atatürk resigned from the army when relieved
of his duties. The naming of a chief minister in Istanbul considered
sympathetic to the nationalist cause brought a brief improvement
in relations, however, and the Ottoman parliament, which met in
January 1920, approved the National Pact. In reaction to these developments,
Allied occupation forces seized public buildings and reinforced
their positions in the capital, arrested and deported numerous nationalist
leaders, and had parliament dismissed.

Allied actions brought a quick response from
the nationalists. In April they convened the Grand National Assembly
in Ankara, in defiance of the Ottoman regime, and elected Atatürk
its president. The Law of Fundamental Organization (also known as
the Organic Law) was adopted in January 1921. With this legislation,
the nationalists proclaimed that sovereignty belonged to the nation
and was exercised on its behalf by the Grand National Assembly.